Rhenkryssning: Köln till Königswinter med sightseeing

The cruise along the river is relaxing, but there were only 3 automated commentary announcements and the English commentary failed on 1 of those. The trip to the Drachenfels cliff was included in the tour and again was extremely disappointing. The view from the top of the cliffs was stunning, but the service on the at the restaurant was slow and disinterested (too many tables for the waiters to manage). The curio shop was closed even though there were lots of visitors to the site. There is no guide, commentary or information about the cliffs. So much potential all around, but poor tourism management of the whole experience.

The boat was crowed and only average seating available if you were last to get on. The time in Koningswinter was too short to achieve lunch and getting up to the top and exploring the town. We opted to take the train back to Cologne.

A lovely day on the Rhine headed south to sightsee in Konigswinter. After boarding we ate a bit of breakfast. The staff were wonderful and had such a great attitude. The cruise took a few hours so you will have plenty time to rest, relax, and take in the view. We left at 0930 and arrived in Konisgswinter at 1330. Upon arrive to Konigswinter we only had two hours to see the sights. This is very limited considering there was a 15 minute walk to the Cog Railway station. Be aware that the Cog runs every 30 minutes so it is possible with a long que there could be a bit of waiting. However, the Cog is two trains and holds quite a few people. About half way up the mountain there is a stop where a castle tour is available. We rode all the way to the top first and almost a 360 degree view of the land, Rhine, and cities were seen. Just gorgeous. We decided to walk down to the half way point to see the castle. Not a bad walk at all. The castle is FANTASTIC! One of the most beautiful we have seen while in Germany. Well worth the extra 7 Euro per person for admission. We decided to get a late lunch and ended up missing the boat back. Not the Cruise company's fault....just not enough time in 2 hours to see and do what we wanted. No problem, there is a train directly to Cologne (Cologne hbf stop) which took us about 45 minutes to get back. This unexpected reroute allowed us an additional visit to the Cologne Cathedral and walking around. Lucky us! By the way, there is lunch items, beer, wine, water, etc. available on the cruise.

I did this tour alone while my husband was in Cologne on business thinking safety in numbers and surely I would find someone who spoke English. Safety is NOT a concern but found very limited English and only 3 "announcements" on the 3 1/2-4 hour journey to Konigswinter in English. It was an extremely hot day (95F) and if you want to sit on the deck to enjoy the view be prepared to be in full sun most of the time. The cliffs provided a fabulous view but I was not prepared for the long journey there. I chose a Monday so few shops were open in Konigswinter. The journey home is about 2-2 1/2 hours so much of the day is spent on the boat. You can opt to purchase drinks on the boat if needed or bring a water bottle. Sunscreen and sunglasses a must !!

Apart from the fact it rained most the day the trip was very pleasant. You can buy food and drink on board - a giid way to pass the time on the trip up the Rhine. Konigswinter is a very pretty town with lots of places to eat. There was a little festival going on in the main square whike we there. We took the cog railway up to Drachenberg Castle which was very interesting and had good views. We didn't see the ruins of the old Schloss which might have been higher.

I enjoyed the cruise very much,service was excellent R P

The only things I would change is the amount of people on the ship. It was a little crowded once 2-3 stops were made.

Cruise was long and not that much to see. Konigwinter was a cute and quaint town. Top of Drachenfel had awesome and amazing views (best part of day). 45mins late going back. Only 1trip back to Cologne...felt rushed...not enough time spent in Konigwinter...just enough time to see Drachenfel. Poor!